This report concludes the second phase of the research project "Risk judgements and decisions of traffic participants". An experiment is reported, in which young bicyclists (12-16 years old) were interrogated in different ways about their behaviour in the approach of an intersection, when they have the intention to turn left on that intersection. The interrogation was also aimed at obtaining insight into the factors and arguments which could influence the behaviour concerned. The interrogated youngsters were selected on the basis of the number of observations of their actual behaviour, which was available for each of them. Several times, namely, unobtrusive video registrations were made at one specific intersection of the approach behaviour of bicyclists turning left. The results of the experiment showed a reasonably large degree of consistency of observed behaviour in comparable circumstances, and also a reasonably large degree of consistency between two of the three different ways of interrogation. There was, however, almost no similarity between observed behaviour and reported behaviour. Subjects reported much active, and safety-enhancing behaviour, while in the observation much passive behaviour was registered. To explain this remarkable results, some hypotheses are offered. (A)
Abstract